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By Dana Zielke
On Thursday, August 21, the JC Anderson Memorial Golf Tournament was held at Sirocco Golf Course, raising funds and awareness for Easter Seals Alberta and Camp Horizon, located near Bragg Creek.
For one High River parent, it was an important day to be part of the presenting sponsors and to golf in the tournament for his daughter. Jamie Ellice is a real estate agent with CENTURY 21 Foothills and has been selling properties since 2010. He has a 10-year-old daughter named Prentyce who has enjoyed Camp Horizon for two years.
“As a parent, we love our kids with all our hearts. With Camp Horizon, it gives parents a bit of a break from all the extras we have to do for and with our children. A cute little story with my daughter, Prentyce, is that this year my wife, Christy, dropped her off on the Monday. Of course, we had all of her bedding, her toys and all her other stuff together and ready to go. Christy got Prentyce all set up at camp and said ‘OK, have fun’ and Prentyce pushed her out and said ‘OK, time for you to go’. This was Prentyce’s second summer there so she knew exactly what this was all about. When I went to pick Prentyce up on the Friday, of course, when she saw me, she yelled ‘Daddy’ and was very excited, then she immediately broke down in tears knowing she had to leave camp. That was hard on me because I know how much it meant for her to be there for those five days, for that week. We had a little moment where I was there with the camp counsellors and Prentyce just sat on my knee. I gave her a hug and said ‘Sweetie, I know how much you love it here but you will be coming back next year. It’s time for us to go home.’ I just wanted you to know a little personal story about being a parent of a camper and how important this cause is. It’s important to my daughter. It’s important to me. Camp Horizon matters,” said Ellice.
Prentyce was diagnosed with a rare, genetic condition known as DDX3X Syndrome when she was three and a half years old.
“It’s a genetic mutation on her X chromosome of the DDX3X gene. In simplest terms, for everybody to understand, it presents like she has a mild cerebral palsy. We first noticed she had some delays at eight months. We got her into occupational therapy, physical therapy and speech therapy at 11 months old. She has been working with professionals in those fields for a long time. We keep pushing her to be what she can be and she has met every milestone; walking and talking,” he explained.
Prentyce is in grade five with her classmates. She reads at about a grade one or two level and she can do most things on her own but she does need help with dressing herself, toiletry, but for the most part, she is very self-sufficient. Recently, she ran in a two-kilometer race around Lake Emerson, as part of the run club that she chose to be a part of.
“She is just the sweetest kid you could ever meet; always happy, never a problem, just a really sweet little girl. Prentyce is involved in a lot of things. In the spring and fall, for eight weeks, she does horseback therapeutic riding at Winning Strides, which is near Nanton. In the wintertime, she is part of the CADS (Canadian Association of Disabled Skiers) program at the Castle Mountain Resort. She skis in the evenings there. Prentyce also does a lot of swimming. Camp Horizon is a weeklong highlight for her and as a parent, it’s really nice that that opportunity is there for her,” Ellice said.
Century 21 in Canada has had a relationship with Easter Seals since 1979.
“In that time, Century 21 brokers and agents across the country have brought in 16 million dollars for Easter Seals, which is really impressive and over $500,000 of that has come from Blair and Bev Gordon of Century 21 Foothills, High River, alone,” said Todd Shylak, Executive Vice President of Century 21 Canada.
Century 21 Canada became Easter Seals title sponsors for the “Kids to Camp” program in 2009. Last year, Century 21, across the country, raised over a million dollars for Easter Seals and every dime they raise stays in the province that it was raised in; $160,000 was raised in Alberta.
“This year is especially meaningful for us as this is our 60th anniversary of Camp Horizon. We are celebrating 60 years of campers, 60 years of memories, 60 years of life-changing impact and that is all thanks to these events and our sponsors. These events help us subsidize the cost of camp by almost 70 percent to make it affordable to those that need it to be more affordable. To give parents the breaks that they need, to give campers the experiences they need and to really drive impact into those kids’ lives. Camp is so much more than just recreation,” said Katherine Such, CEO of Easter Seals Alberta. “Easter Seals Camp Horizon offers life-changing accessible summer camp experiences in Alberta for children, youth and adults with disabilities and medical conditions. Our inclusive summer camp programs promote independence, personal growth and unforgettable memories.”
For more information on Camp Horizon and their programs, go to easterseals.ab.ca.
